The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has criticised the Federal Government’s proposed 30-day fuel discount at NNPC stations, describing the measure as a temporary gesture that would do little to address the hardship caused by high fuel prices.
Atiku asserted that the proposed discount was a desperate and politically motivated response to the rising cost of living.
In a statement issued by the Director of Strategic Communication of ADC Presidential Campaign Council, Phrank Shaibu, the former Vice President described the initiative as “reckless, disgraceful, and scandalous.”
He argued that Nigerians who had endured prolonged economic hardship could not be expected to regard a one-month fuel discount as a lasting solution.
Atiku rejected what he described as “calendar-scheduled, election-laced subsidy package.”
“Nigerians are not fools to be offered a month of discounted fuel after years of punishing prices and then expected to forget the hardship when the discount expires. This is shameless and heartless,” he said.
Atiku emphasised that the proposed intervention amounted to a temporary measure to address a problem that had persisted for years.
He questioned what would happen after the 30-day period, saying Nigerians would still face high fuel prices, rising transport fares, and increasing food costs.
“What happens on Day 31? Nigerians wake up to the same brutal prices, the same punishing transport fares, and the same rising cost of food. The government cannot manufacture relief for one month and expect Nigerians to applaud while the hardship remains.”
Atiku also raised concerns about the scope of the proposed discount, noting that it would be limited to NNPC stations.
Atiku stated that the government had yet to disclose how much motorists would save per litre or guarantee that savings enjoyed by transport operators would be transferred to passengers through reduced fares.
The former Vice President equally described the government’s decision to introduce the temporary intervention as an admission that the hardship facing Nigerians could no longer be ignored.
“This volte-face proves that the production-support proposal I have advanced is workable, achievable, and not complicated. The Tinubu government and its spin doctors have tried to make it sound impossible, yet they are now reaching for a temporary subsidy-style intervention because the pain has become impossible to ignore,” he remarked.
He reiterated his proposal for capped and budgeted production support tied to fuel refined in Nigeria, with safeguards to ensure that the benefit reaches consumers while also supporting local refining.
Atiku noted that Nigerians needed a lasting solution rather than temporary relief, maintaining that the government could not ask citizens to endure years of hardship and then offer 30 days of relief as a solution.
“Nigerians need lasting relief, not a countdown to the return of hardship. Tinubu’s government cannot spend years telling Nigerians to endure, then offer 30 days of relief and call it a solution,” he stated.
He reaffirmed his commitment to making life more affordable for Nigerians, saying: “Tinubu made life expensive. I will make life affordable again.”
